


Red, Green and Black

by Spiralingletters



Series: Crash and Burn [2]
Category: Young Justice - All Media Types
Genre: F/F, F/M, Female Tim Drake, Gen, Hanahaki Disease, Hurt No Comfort, Tim Drake-centric
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-23
Updated: 2020-09-23
Packaged: 2021-03-06 21:34:35
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,861
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26355802
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Spiralingletters/pseuds/Spiralingletters
Summary: She felt something choke her. It wasn't like all the other times that jealousy would grab her, this wasblooming.She excused herself and headed to her quarters on the watchtower. She doubled over as pain hit her and coughed out a petal.
Relationships: (Unrequited)Stephanie Brown/Tim Drake, (Unrequited)Tim Drake/Garfield Logan, Garfield Logan/Perdita, M'gann M'orzz & Tim Drake, Stephanie Brown & Tim Drake
Series: Crash and Burn [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1866418
Kudos: 25





	1. Chapter 1

“You’re cheating!” Tim elbowed Bart’s shoulder as his fingers were moving in a blur on the video game controller. “I can’t move that fast!”

“You never said no powers, Tim.” Bart grinned.  
“So I don’t think this is considered cheating.” He grinned impishly and Tim tackled him, sending them sprawling onto the Watchtower's floor.  
The play wrestled when Bart suddenly sat up.

"Tim, I've been observing you for the past couple of days and I've noticed something,"Bart said. Tim gave him an inquiring look and motioned for him to continue.

"Your in love with Garfield,"Bart said slowly. Tim stared at Bart, the colour draining out of her face. She looked around and hissed,"No I'm not!"  
Bart sighed,"I know you. You're my first friend here and I know when you lie."  
Tim slumped against the wall and nodded.  
"I do but he and Perdita are so in love there is no way those two are ever gonna break-up."

Bart hugged his friend and said,"Well, I've got to go."  
Tim stood up and grabbed her things as Bart zoomed out of the Watchtower through the zeta tubes.

'Well, I guess I have to go help M'gann prepare for the party.'  
Sighing, Tim got up and went to the Watchtower's kitchen.

~~~~~~~~~~~~`

M'gann couldn't help but like Tim. She was sweet, kind, helpful but what drew her to the little bird was the fact that she was hurting just like M'gann used to.  
M'gann didn't really understand love but she had experienced it. It had its ups and downs just like life. What she understood was that love hurts. It _hurts_.  
That's why she didn't feel the least bit mad at Tim when she confessed her love for Gar.

To be honest she had always hoped that Tim and Gar would get together but alas her hopes were crushed when Gar announced he was dating Perdita.

"So Tim, are you feeling any better?"asked M'gann. Tim sighed and shook her head.  
"I wish I could go to bed and wake up the next morning without these feelings."  
M'gann shook her head,"It isn't that easy. Pain is normal in this period."

Tim finished putting the last tray of cookies in the oven. "Well, that's done."  
M'gann smiled warmly at her,"Thank you dear."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The party was in full swing. Everyone was socialising, dancing and playing.  
The teens had gathered themselves in a corner and were playing Truth or Dare.

"I know! You two should kiss,"Traci declared. Garfield grinned,"That's not how truth or dare is played Traci."  
"I know but you two are so cute!"  
Most of them agreed with her. 

Gar theatrically offered a hand to Perdita and pulled her to him when she took it. Dipping her, he gave a chaste kiss and then bowed to the applauding audience and Perdita.  
The sight made Tim sick to her stomach. She hated how Gar made her heart flutter and how he made her hate him at the same time.

Tim cheered with the other and internally cringed at her behaviour. Gar wasn't her's and she wasn't going to ruin his happiness.  
Tim felt something stab her heart. She got this pain everyday but she never thought much of it as it was never this painful.  
She felt something choke her. It wasn't like all the other times that jealousy would grab her, this was _blooming_.  
She excused herself and headed to her quarters on the watchtower.

Tim broke into a run and rushed to her room. She locked the door promptly after her arrival and fell to her knees coughing harshly. When the coughing bout stopped she heaved a sigh of relief before she doubled over as pain hit her and coughed out a petal.

It was green.

She coughed again and this time more petals rushed to her mouth. She gazed at the petals in-front of her an let out a choked sob.  
"I have Hanahaki."

Tim went to sleep that night filled with fear and anxiety.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

In the following days, Tim was slowly drifting away from Gar and the others.  
Dick briefly suspected something was off about Tim when she asked him about the youngest case of Hanahaki Disease recorded.  
Of course he questioned her but Tim in her fashion wrote it out as research.

Stephanie also noticed something was different. Tim almost completely stopped talking about Gar. It was the only noticeable change in such a short time period. She knew Tim wasn't okay.

”Tim, what’s going on? You’ve stopped hanging out at the Hub and at The Watchtower. You've even stopped hanging out with me and Cass!”  
Tim shrugged and lied. "I've just been feeling sick lately."  
Stephanie glared at her. "You are not a good liar you know."

Tim gaped at her in mock offence. "I lie to Batman and he never calls me out on it."  
Steph snorted,"That's because Batman can't work out a teenage girl's mind even if it was laid down to him as an equation."  
They stared at each other before promptly bursting into laughter.

Steph was the first to compose herself. " But you will tell me if anything is wrong, okay?"  
"I promise."  
This time the lie went unnoticed.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The first full flower came after a week. A carnation. It was Tim's favourite flower but it wasn't any normal colour. It had red and green petals with black edges and leaves.  
She dry heaved on the bathroom floor and stared at the flower in horror.

The first flower wasn't supposed to come this soon. She must've miscalculated the days it would take for the first flower to fully grow.

"What am I going to do?"she wailed.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

No-one noticed when she started avoiding strenuous and stealth missions. She even stopped patrolling Gotham often only patrolling alone when she was needed.  
Tim had slowly resigned herself to her fate.

A few weeks later the coughing fits got worse and the flowers grew thorns on their stems. She couldn't last an hour without coughing up flower petals and worst of all she had vehemently refused to confide in anyone the fact that she was dying.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Hey Tim," Steph greeted her as she entered the room.  
"So monitor duty with you today," Steph continued, "How about we spar?"

Tim blanched at the thought of sparring. "No thanks."  
"Come on, it'll be fun. Please?"

Tim looked at Steph encountering one of her biggest weakness, puppy dog eyes.  
"Would you stop that. St..o..p. Fine, we can spar,"Tim sighed in defeat.

When sparring, Tim focused on breathing proportionately, blocking soft hits and dodging the heavy ones.  
She delivered strong blows that made Steph back up a bit. Trying to catch her breath, Tim failed to notice Steph coming up from behind her.  
Stephanie flipped Tim onto the mat and let a victorious whoop when the computer announced Robin's fail. She failed to notice that Temperance had fallen down and started having a coughing fit.

Tim tried to force the flowers back into her lungs but she couldn't. She ended up coughing up flowers and blood. Stephanie gasped in shock and knelt down next to her friend. She wanted to help to do something but she couldn't. She could only watch in pain and fear as her friend hacked up flowers and wonder who was the reason for this.


	2. Red, Black and Purple

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "This is your fault!"

When the Team came back, they were accompanied by the Outsiders. They were not expecting this to be the sight that greeted them. Tim was wheezing as Steph stared at her in horror.  
Dick didn't even need a whistle as he gently picked up his sister and took her to the med-bay.  
Bart and M'gann looked at the girl with one thought racing through their minds.

_Garfield._

~~~~~~~~~~~~  
A week passed and Tim could barely last an hour without going into a coughing fit. Stephanie and Bart came around everyday to talk to her. The brought her favourite snacks and somehow managed to bring a TV to the Med-Bay.  
Dick always sang her lullabies and narrated mission reports to her.  
The other teen heroes came too. Even Garfield.

"Why won't you consider a surgery?"  
"Because Gar, I don't want to live like that. I don't want to subject people to that," she whispered hoarsely. Gar stayed there stroking his friend's hair.

~~~~~~~~~~~  
Tim got out of bed by herself when the whole Team was on a mission. She wanted to take a shower so she got up.  
' _Where is Alfie when you need him? _'__

__Tim made it to the bathroom just in time to collapse on the floor. Wheezing from over exertion, she slowly pulled off her top and threw it onto the floor. She stood up and turned the shower on in just her sports bra and shorts.  
The warm water trickled down her back and soaked her when she suddenly started hacking up petals with thorns and blood speckled on them. Tim fell onto all fours and coughed.  
She could feel life starting to elude her._ _

__Her world turned blurry and she felt tears burn her eyes as they flowed down her cheeks.  
Tim sobbed silently as her couching prevented her from calling for help._ _

__Stephanie froze at the emptiness of the Med-Bay. Tim wasn't there and the sheets were cold, where was she.  
"Bart! It's Tim, she's not in the med bay!"_ _

__Bart zipped around the Watchtower before stopping in Tim's room. The Bathroom door was ajar and the sound of coughing flowed through it.  
He turned on his com and frantically said,"I found her. Her old bedroom, she's in the bathroom."_ _

__Bart didn't even bother turning off his comm. He found Tim on the floor feebly coughing as she cried.  
"Tim!"  
Kneeling down he put his best friend's head on his lap and stroked her hair murmuring soothing words and promises. Tim smiled slightly before grimacing at the pain.  
"St..Steph. Where is she?"_ _

__A figure with blonde hair and an eggplant outfit knelt in-front of her.  
"I'm here darling. You're gonna be okay just breathe," Steph's voice sounded pitchy as if she was trying not to cry._ _

__"Steph, I can feel it. I'm not going to stay and it's okay to cry."  
Stephanie let out a slow wail and burst into tears. Dick fought his way through his teammates and knelt down next to Steph, stroking her shoulder as the three of them cried.  
Tim's eyes closed and her wheezing stopped as the flower grew out of her heart._ _

__They stared at the carnations. A sign that Tim had passed on. Steph flipped Tim's right palm and glared at the name on it.  
 _Garfield Logan__ _

__"You! This is all your Fault!" Steph shouted at Garfield. Beast Boy recoiled at her tone and looked at the ground.  
 _'His fault.'__ _

__~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
Tim's funeral was small and melancholic.  
She had died to young._ _

__Steph got tired of hearing apologies and locked herself in her room.  
She took out a picture of her Tim that she had taken a few weeks before she died and stared at it. It dropped from her fingers as she coughed out a single petal._ _

__Tim was gone._ _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This made me cry. It's too sad and I wanted Femslash but I couldn't bear the thought of making Cassie or Steph or Cissie the bad guy.  
> So, yeah.


End file.
